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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/30070980">coming from the cold, buried under heat</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/cruelhighways/pseuds/cruelhighways'>cruelhighways</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Avatar: The Last Airbender</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Cuddling &amp; Snuggling, F/M, Fluff, I'm soft for these two, New Year's Morning, Self-Indulgent, Sharing a Bed, they're in love okay, with some angst mixed in</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-03-16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-15 18:48:03</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,110</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/30070980</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/cruelhighways/pseuds/cruelhighways</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Katara wakes up hungover in a bed that isn't her own after a New Year's Eve party, limbs entangled with Zuko's.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Katara/Zuko (Avatar)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>174</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>coming from the cold, buried under heat</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Katara wakes slowly and drowsily, blinking into the pale sunlight that falls through a crack in the blinds. The bitter taste of vodka clings to the back of her throat, a remnant of the party they all attended last night. Her memories are blurred. Still, she knows they had a good time; neither she nor Zuko are usually into partying, but New Year’s Eve is an unmissable occasion. </p><p>As her conscious mind slowly switches on, confusion settles into the furrow of her brow. She isn’t in her own bed; she has curtains in her room<em> ,  </em> not blinds, and there’s an unfamiliar body of warmth beside her. A sharp intake of breath lances through her as she lifts her head, trying to process the identity of the boy in the bed beside her.  <em> Zuko.  </em>He’s lying on his back, dark head of hair spilled over the pillow. All at once, memories crash over her like a tidal wave: the two of them stumbling through the streets after Aang’s party, talking and laughing and kissing. An emotion akin to softness pools in Katara’s stomach as she takes in the sight of Zuko’s familiar, scarred face. The kissing is a new development—but a welcome one.  </p><p>Sighing, Katara settles back down onto the pillow. They didn’t go any further than hands above clothes, but they did talk drunkenly for a long while before passing out. She remembers him saying something about their respective futures, something about their past lives. Something about his father, too—it’s been a few months since Ozai disinherited him, but she knows that they’ve been the hardest yet happiest months of Zuko's life so far. A smile ripples across her face as she watches his chest rise and fall. The dull hangover hovering in her peripheral vision has nothing on the way Zuko looks when he’s asleep: peaceful, beautiful, careless. He looks like embers incarnate, lost to the smoky haze of sleep. </p><p>Katara’s torn between waking him up so they can talk or letting him sleep for a while longer before his psych lecture this morning. Eventually, she decides she doesn’t have the heart to wake him. Quietly, in an effort not to disturb him, she slips out from beneath the covers and pads barefoot into his small kitchen. She’s wearing one of his shirts as a nightgown—it’s kind of annoying how comfortable it is.  </p><p>Pouring a glass of cold water from his tap, she glances out the window. A heavy mist has fallen over the city in a chalk-white flood, reducing the shapes of the buildings outside to blurred outlines of their former selves. Enraptured, she remains by the window for a while as she drinks her water. Zuko doesn’t keep any painkillers in his apartment, so the water will have to be enough to cure her hangover. </p><p>Having finished her drink, she walks soundlessly back into his room and slips back beneath the covers. Deliriously, she decides being so close to Zuko once again feels like a reconciliation—even though she only left for a minute. At the interruption, a muffled sound echoes from the back of his throat. “Katara, that you?” He reaches out absently, arm folding over her waist. </p><p>“Sorry,” she winces. “I didn’t mean to wake you.” </p><p>“No, I don’t mind.” Yawning, he blinks in irritation against the morning light. “Fuck. I’ve got a headache.” </p><p>“That’ll be the hangover.” </p><p>“God. I can’t believe how much I drank,” he groans. “Aang really brings it out in me.” </p><p>She laughs. “He brings it out in all of us, to be honest. I haven’t been that pissed since orientation.” </p><p>Closing his eyes again, Zuko rests his head on her shoulder. “You’re cold,” he mumbles. “Why are you cold?” </p><p>Smiling, she puts her feet on his calves. He shrieks, pushing her away. “I got up to get some water,” she explains with a laugh. “Want me to get you some? It’ll help with the headache.” </p><p>At that, his grip tightens almost imperceptibly. Shaking his head, he whispers, “Don’t leave yet.” </p><p>Feeling stupidly content, she nods. She intends to stay here for as long as she can; it’ll take more than a glass of water to force space between them. Relaxing against him once more, she watches the mist shift and change through Zuko’s blinds, a breathing entity. “This is a good start to the new year,” she decides, a quiet echo of her subconscious. </p><p>Zuko doesn’t respond immediately, still caught in the clutches of sleep. “Yeah. Last night was fun—we talked for ages.” </p><p>“Until five, I think.” </p><p>He glances at the digital clock on his bedside with a glum look. “I can’t believe I’ve got to head out for a lecture in two hours,” he mutters. </p><p>“Can’t you skip it?” she asks. “Stay in bed. Your professor won’t mind.” </p><p>“I only just transferred onto the course from business,” he sighs. “He’ll kick me straight off again if I immediately start missing lectures.” </p><p>Katara’s silent for a moment. Ozai was the one who forced him into doing business in the first place—Azula, too, though she took to the course with far more eagerness and efficiency than Zuko did. It’s easy to see that she isn’t happy either, but there’s no getting through to her—at least, not by her brother. Someone else, maybe. “Okay,” she murmurs. Gently, she takes Zuko’s hand and traces circles on the back of his palm. “Hey, Zuko?” </p><p>“Yeah?” </p><p>She hesitates, unsure how to continue. “What is this between us? I don’t want it to be nothing.” </p><p>He looks at her with fervency, an unidentifiable emotion pooling in his dark eyes. “I don’t want this to be nothing, either.” He pauses. “So…can we be something?” </p><p>She half-smiles, hope unfolding in her chest. “Something,” she agrees. That’s enough for now, enough for this quietly golden moment they’ve shared. The mist remains opaque outside his window, but she knows it won’t be long before it lifts. Propping herself up on an elbow, she presses an unassuming kiss to his lips. It lasts for a long moment, a conscious being in its own right. Zuko opens his mouth as if he wants to say something, but he doesn’t follow through. “What?” she asks with a grin. </p><p>Shaking his head, he lets out an unsteady breath. “I feel so goddamn lucky right now.” </p><p>“So do I,” she admits. This time, he kisses her. It’s painful to know that Zuko will need to leave in a while, but it isn’t time yet. Somehow, it feels like enough to simply breathe him in, to touch him, to lie beneath the sheets and look towards the scorching future.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>thanks for reading, I'd love to hear what you thought! if you like, you can come chat to me on my <a href="https://www.tumblr.com/blog/view/sxpphicazula">tumblr</a> or <a href="https://sxpphicazula.tumblr.com/post/645774079823151104/go-check-out-this-zutara-one-shot-where-katara">reblog this fic</a>! title from 'only' by RY X.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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